Simpson erupts for season-high 20 runs to take series opener against Loras

DUBUQUE, Iowa – For the first time on the season, Simpson plated 20 runs in a game as the Storm finished with a doubleheader split on the road against Loras.

Simpson (19-11, 10-5 A-R-C) drove in 20 runs on 17 hits in the opener, the highest run total of the season and most since the Storm put up 22 against Loras last season. On the day, Tijmen Nagel led the way with six hits in the lead-off position, while Trenten Kingrey finished the series with a four-hit performance of his own.

In the second game, Simpson and Loras (14-14, 8-7) traded the lead back and forth five times. Trailing by one in the ninth, back-to-back hits from Drew Carlson, and Trenten Kingrey allowed pinch-hitter Kasey Carter to drive in the tying run. However, the Duhawks managed a two-out comeback of their own to salvage a split on the day.

GAME ONE SUMMARY

• Jacob Roberts got the Storm on the board first with a two RBI double into left in the first inning.
• Simpson erupted for seven runs in the second inning, highlighted by two RBI doubles from Bryson Gibson and Roberts. Dalton Ferrin, Kasey Carter, and Tijmen Nagel each drove in one run as well to put Simpson up 9-0.
• After two more runs for Simpson in the third, and Loras scoring for the first time in the fourth, Ferrin made it a 12-1 ballgame with his RBI single to center in the fifth.
• In the seventh, Nagel connected on his first home run of the season, a two-run shot that was followed up with a solo shot from Drew Carlson.
• The final touches from the Storm came on a bases-loaded walk to Ferrin, and a Duhawk error allowed runs number 19 and 20 to cross finished off the 20-7 result.
• Five different Storm recorded a multi-hit game with Nagel leading the way with four knocks. Carter and Gibson finished with three each, and Ferrin and Roberts added two.
• Charlie Thomas earned the win on the mound, going 5.1 innings while punching out five before Jaymison Howard closed out the final 1.2 innings.

GAME ONE STARS

• Tijmen Nagel: 4-for-6, 1 home run, 3 RBI, 4 runs, 1 stolen base
• Jacob Roberts: 2-for-4, 2 doubles, 4 RBI, 2 runs
• Kasey Carter: 3-for-6, 1 double, 3 RBI, 1 run
• Bryson Gibson: 3-for-4, 1 double, 3 RBI, 2 runs
• Charlie Thomas: 5.1 IP, 5 strikeouts

GAME TWO SUMMARY

• Loras jumped on the Storm with three runs in the second inning, a lead that held until the fifth.
• After an offensive slugfest in the opener, Simpson did not get any action on the scoreboard until Trenten Kingrey connected on his team-leading sixth home run of the season. The three-run shot tied up the ballgame.
• Loras regained the lead in the sixth with an RBI double but in the seventh, aggressive baserunning from Jacob Roberts allowed him to score from second on a steal and error to tie it up.
• Tijmen Nagel continued his red-hot day at the plate with an RBI single later in the inning, scoring Sam Campin and giving Simpson a 5-4 lead.
• Loras tied it up in the bottom of the seventh but another aggressive baserunning play allowed Will Hudelson to steal home and the lead back.
• The Duhawks continued to fight back, scoring twice in the eighth and forcing Simpson to once again claw back. In the ninth, pinch-hitter Kasey Carter delivered the game-tying hit, scoring Carlson and sending the game tied into the bottom of the ninth.
• However, Loras scrounged together back-to-back two-out hits to walk-off the Storm and salvage a split on the day.
• The top four in the order for the Storm combined for 11 hits and five walks, led by Kingrey's four-hit night.

GAME TWO STARS

• Trenten Kingrey: 4-for-6, 1 home run, 3 RBI, 1 run
• Drew Carlson: 2-for-2, 4 walks, 2 runs
• Tijmen Nagel: 2-for-5, 1 double, 1 RBI, 1 run, 1 stolen base, 1 walk
• Sam Campin: 2-for-3, 1 double, 2 walks, 1 run

UP NEXT
The rubber match for the series begins tomorrow at noon.